St. Landry democrat., 1887-09-03


Alb the Anniversary of the Destruction
of the Temple-Flessing the Moon.
On the last Saturday of July the syna-
gogues of the Jewish community of Jeru-
salem were the scene of a very striking
ceremony. 1t was the eve Of the black
fast concentrating the final overthrow
of the Jewish nationality; for Saturday,
according t O the Hebrew calendar, was the
ninth of Ab-"the ninth day Of the fifth
month" referred to in the Bible, the
anniversary of the destruction of both
the first and the second temples Of Jeru-
salem. In Western lands the fast has
long ceased to be kept by any save the
strict few; but in the East-particularly
in the Holy City, where the Hebrew still
considers himself in captivity
mourns the downfall Of his nationality
literally in "sackclOth and ashes and
/ with a passion that moves the stranger
' to wonder.
The order of obserV ance is as follows;
AS evening approaches, the father OF
each household puts on coarse sacklng,
attres himself in his oldest garments,
and gathers his wife and children round
him. Some hard-boiled eggs, a little
salt and dry bread, previously prepared,
are placed in a tray upon the ground
! This is known as the ''mOurners meal
from the fact Of its always being offered
to those who return from the funeral of
a relative. Nearby is a painful of ashes
| The father seats himself upon the ground
! in the attitude Of mourning, rends one
/ side of his garment across, throws
/ handful of ashes upon his head and
/ beard, and then, gathering little dust
/ from the floor, sprinhles some
/ of it over the eggs, salt, and
! bread, and SO eats of them. He
afterWard pronOunces the mOu rners
/ benediction, and proceeds to the tsyna-
! gogue, which presents an unusual and
+ rather weird appearance. The lamps
and chandeliers are unlighted; the holy
ark is hung with black curtain rent
across, and the reading desk is covered
with a clio h of the same funereal color.
The minister is not standing in his GUS
tomary place, but seated on the steps
that lead up to the reading platform;
and the cOngregants, thousands in num-
Der, are packed in ranks upon the floor,
shoeless and girt in saCkcloth. In
front of every two is a piece of wax
taper giving enough light to read
by and just sutficing to make the gloomy
aspect of the interior visible. Suddenly
there is a sound of parchment cracking,
and all are silent as the precentor unrolis
an old and well-worn scroll; for nothing
printed or written on paper may be used
in the synagogue service. And then
amid perfect stiffness, with many tears
and much sobbing he begins to chant
the Lamentations of Jeremiah. The
chant is slow and mournful. and is taken
upnow and then by the multitude pres
ent, who beat their breasts or sob an &C
compartment to the reader.
For about threp-quarters of an hour
the chanting is continued, when the
precentor ceases. and the chief rabbi of
the community seats himself on the
steps in front of the ark. At signal
two attendants on duty walk down each
side of the edifice and commence to ex-
tinguish one by one the tapers used by
the worshipers. Slowly the synagogue
becomes darker and gloomier as they
move along, until the place is in total
darkness; only the faint glimmer of the
"Ner Tamid," or perpetual lamp in front
of the Holy of Holies,' remains, like a
speck of light, in the far distance Then
the voice of the rabbi is heard firm
and clear as, in the ladino, or Spanish
of the fast, he reminds his
congregants of how many years
have elapsed since the temple was de-
stroyed and Jerusalem sacked. In pa
thetic tones he dwells upon the persecu-
tons that followed this event, and then
passes in review all that has happened to
the Jews in every part of the world dur
;,,r = ha Nv sc Il,
"still small voice speaking thus to some
thousand worshipers in perfect dark
ness is most eerie; and when the rabbi
exclaims in Hebrew, think, 0 Lord,
what has befallen US p there are very few
dry eyes in the assembly. The cry is
taken up too; and soon nothing is heard
but the subdued weeping of men and the
wailing of women, relieved now and
then by the overcoming exclamation
"Zechor me hayu nu"'-"Remember
what has happened to usw In darkness
the members of the congregation file out
and return to their homes
The celebration in the synagogue is
only one phase in the solemnity of the
fast. At midnight another scene is en-
acted in the city. From the "homes of
learning and "places of assembly" Of
the "Ashkenasim' Jews the wardens and
elders come forth, heads covered and Ian
terms in hand. They are invariably
elderl persons, most of them men who
have come to the Holy Land in order to
die there and be laid at rest in the Gene
terry of Zion. They walk silently
through the deserted street. and march
straight to the western wall" the only
fragment still visible of the ancient tenn
pie wall. Here they station themselves,
after kissing the stones, and here they
keep the midnight and morning watch
as their forefathers were wont, but with
wailing and lamentation over the evils
that have befallen Israel. At daybreak
they are joined by the adult members of
the congregation, and later still by the
women, who bring their little ones with
them, even the babes and sucklings. The
whole of the party sit upon the ground,
crowding the open space in front of the
western wall" and filling every nook
and corner in the vicinity. They pray
and weep without ceasing until the sun
is fully risen and it is time to attend the
morning service Unwashed and I'M
kempt-for it is not permitted to wash
ones face or comb ones hair on the
Of Volt no food